Why fasting is prescribed unto you?

Glory be unto Allah, the Lord of the worlds. We thank Him for His grace and mercy having to witness another Ramadan. Whosoever Allah guides cannot be misled and whoseoever Allah misleads cannot be guided. I bear witness that there is no god except Allah with no associate and Muhammad is His prophet. May the peace and blessings continue to abide with Prophet Muhammad (s.a.w).

Allah has assigned to us the season of goodness in which the rewards for good deeds are not only in multiple folds but also the bad deeds are blooted out. In it, there are opportunities for repentance and forgiveness. Whoever uses the time to purify himself will be spiritually cleansed; he will attain success in this world and hereafter. That is one of the blessings of Allah in the month of Ramadan.

Ramadan is a pillar of Islam in which the Glorious Qur’an was revealed. In the month, we have a night that is better than a thousand months. It means fasting in Ramadan is equvalent to fasting in 10 months. This is also not to mention the blooting out of sins of a repentant Muslim.

It is a period of worship during the day and better part of the night. We were created to worship Him alone. Obedience to His ordernances is as important as worshipping Him. One of the greatest act of worship is fasting in the month of Ramadan as He commanded us in Quran 2: 183-185.

But why do we have to fast? According to the above verses of the Qur’an, Allah enjoined us to fast so that we can gain piety (taqwa). Any one who is able to gain more taqwa will intensify in other acts of worship; will shun or think less of this material world; will always do what is good, kind to people irrespective of class or creed and will gain nearness to Allah. That is the quintessence of fasting.

In doing this, we also need to know what we should do and what we should refrain from in this glorious month.

Fasting is not only about abstinence from food and drink, but also going closer to Allah by doing what you are enjoined to do and shunning those things that will vitiate your fast and render the whole exercise useless. Come to think of it, what is the need to deny yourself from the food and pleasure of life, feeling the pangs of hunger and yet with the availability of food or the means to get same, you chose to fast only to be rendered useless on account of ignorance or sheer negligence.

One of the virtues of fasting reported in an authentic hadith is that Allah has chosen for Himself and will reward without measure is fasting. “Except for fasting whihc is for my sake, I will reward greatly.” Fasting is one of the greatest deed Allah required from us even with promise that the supplication of a fasting person will not go unanswered.

The fasting person will also have the privileged of intercession by his fast on the day of judgement. A sahee hadith says: “O’ Lord, I prevented him from his food and physical desires during the day, so, let me interceed for him.”

Fasting is also a strong protection and a fortress that keeps a person safe from hell fire. One hadiths clearly says that whoever fasts one day for the sake of Allah, allah will move his face from a distance of seventy years from fire.